Rabble.



O. SPINZIG & W. HOIVIMEL.

RABBLE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY3. I913.

Patented June 20, 1916.

.1 $HEETS-SHEET I- Q3 InveiZ'EFs flfiawiwu Tm: COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH 60., WASHINGTON, n. c. Q

l ion RABBLE.

Application filed July 3, 1913.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, Or'ro SPINZIG and vVoLDEMAR HOMMEL, Ph. D., a subject of the German Emperor and a citizen of the Swiss Republic, respectively, residing at Clausthal, in the German Empire, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rabbles, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to mechanical furnaces for roasting ores or the like materials or substances, or for drying same or for both, such furnaces being hereinafter termed, for the sake of brevity, ore-roasting furnaces.

The invention has for its chief object to provide means for rabbling the ore in the furnace rapidly and continuously without unduly heating the rabble, and in such manner as to insure a steady and as far as possible, uniform movement of the ore from the feeder end of the furnace to the discharge end.

Heretofore in ore-roasting furnaces which have been rabbled mechanically, the ore has usually been moved along the hearth or hearths of the furnace by rabbles which moved longitudinally of the furnace. Such devices have been designed for instance by Spence, Hegeler and others, who introduced into the furnace long iron bars having rabbles secured to their inner ends, while others have provided chains for carrying the rabbles, or have a central contrivance for operating the rabbles. These various methods of operating rabbles, however, have the drawback that it is difficult or impossible to cool the rabble so long as it is in the furnace, and therefore the rabble has to be periodically removed and allowed time to cool down. This entails a slow operation of the rabble, the result of which is that the ore cannot be stirred with the frequency and thoroughness that is desirable. Complete desulfurization, however, can only be obtained quickly if the ore is rabbled rapidly all the time, because it is of great importance that every particle of the ore should be brought into contact with air as often as possible. The same applies to furnaces used for drying or calcining other substances, because it is of great advantage always to expose a suflicient surface to the hot gases.

Another'drawback in rabbles as heretofore devised is the necessity of providing Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 20, 1916.

Serial No. 777,289.

swinging doors or the like which open when the rabble enters the furnace chamber and also when it has to be withdrawn therefrom, both of which operations cause a great rush-in of superfluous cold air, which tends to cool the ore unnecessarily and to dilute the sulfur gases so much as to render them unsuitable for the manufacture of sulfuric acid.

The present invention aims at overcoming these drawbacks, for which purpose according to the said invention the rabble or like scraping device is adapted to be moved transversely of the furnace so as to move the ore or like material longitudinally of same or perpendicularly to its own line of movement, by securing the scraper blades to the bar that carries them at an angle to the longitudinal axis of the said bar and all in clined toward that direction toward which the treated material is to be moved.

In carrying the invention into practice said rabble comprises a series of removable bars carrying the scraper blades, and secured to the parts that carry'said bars in positions opposite to the manholes of the furnace. Said bars extend longitudinally of the furnace and carry V-shaped or angled scraper blades, the pitch of which is such that they are adapted to move the ore always in one direction transversely of their own line of movement.

The rabbles are guided and actuated by one or more rods reciprocably mounted 1 transversely of the furnace and connected externally of the furnace with a. reciprocating or oscillatory driving device. These reciprocating rods and also the bars that carry the scraper blades are so formed and connected together as to permit a cooling fluid to be circulated through them.

The invention will now be described more fully with reference to the example thereof shown in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure l is a transverse section, taken approximately on the line 11 of Fig. 2, of an ore-roasting furnace and rabbling device embodying the features of the present invention, and Fig. 2 is a sectional plan of same taken approximately on the line 22 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 shows diagrammatically one mode of connecting up the rabble bars, for the circulation of the cooling fluid. 7

In the said drawings a indicates the muffle which is heated in the usual manner from At one side of said muflie there are a series of manholes 6 arranged at suitable intervals and immediately opposite these at the other side of the muflle are a series of openings 7 which at their outer ends are just wide enough to allow of the free passage of reciprocating rods 9, g. These reciprocating rods, which are perfectly tubular, are provided at the ends nearest the manholes c with unions or T- pieces h by means of which they are detachably connected to longitudinal rabble bars i also preferably tubular. V

At their other or outer ends the reciproeating rods 9 are provided with racks j, which gear with a corresponding series of pinions is mounted on a common shaft Z ex r in common use for other purposes they need not herein be described. Or, if desired, in

place of the shaft l with its pinions there may be provided some I such oscillating v 'mechanism as that of a lvorthingto'n pump.

If desired the reciprocating rods may,

' instead of projecting .throughonly one. side of the furnace as shown in the drawings, be prolonged also in the other direction so as toextend through both sides of the, furn'aee.' p p In order to steady the reciprocating rods 9 and to insure their straight movement there may be provided guide rollers or sheaves a, n earned by brackets 0 secured totliebrickwork of the furnace. If desired also the projecting parts of the reciprocating-rods outside the furnace or the-racks j may be braced r g dly together in suitable waym order to increase their rigid-- I ity; or they may besuitably guided in hooks or strutsof any suitablekin In some cases it'is advisable to allow as little air as possible to-enter. the furnace 7 .through the openings in which the longitudinal rods work and for this purpose these openings may be provided, with tubes or bushesv 79 closely fitting the longitudinal rods and provided, if desired, with lubricating cups 7). 7 r

7 In ;order to cool the rabble bars and the reciprocating rods which actuate them these bars or-rods' may be made hollow and ,may

I be connected by a nipple g to a flexible tube of hose through which a cooling fluid may be'supplied from 'any convenient source. Such fluid may be either liquid. or gaseous, but preferably would consist of air which is conducted, say, to two or more of the reciprocating rods, passes through the rabble bars, and is discharged through the other reciprocating rods as indicated by the arrows in Fig. 3, said bars and rods being so connected together as to prevent leakage of the cooling fluid at the joints while at the same time allowing them to be readily taken apart. Such fluid-tight joints may comprise butting flanges between which may be interposed washers of asbestos or other heatresisting material.

The rabbles proper or scraper blades are shown at s and may be of any suitable shape, which will give the effect desired, namely that when the rabble is drawn transversely of the muflie in the axial direction of the reciprocating rods the ore will be moved thereby in a direction at right angles to the direction of movement of the rabble, that is to say longitudinally of the furnace. I11 the examples shown they are angled or V- shaped, and they may be hinged to any rabble bars 71' in the well-known way, so that in one direction of motion of the rabble they would propel the ore whilst in the other direction of motion of the rabble they would give way and pass idly over the same.

The ore or other substance which is to be roasted enters the muffle at t (Fig. 2) through a suitable opening in the roof to which opening it may be fed. by any suitable mechanical or other feeder. If there is a flue situated immediately above the muille the said feed opening may, of course, be in the form of a chute passing through the flue and made of refractory material.

The direction of travel of the ore is indicated in Fig. 2 by the arrow X, the discharge end of the muflle being shown at a. At this latter end of the muflle the scraper blades may be somewhat modified if desired so as to discharge the ore either at the end or at the sides. of the furnace. The ore may fall into pockets, whence it may be removed in any convenient way by external means. Accumulation or residuum, however, at the sides of the muflie is to be avoided and therefore the muflie is preferably so formed in cross section (as shown in Fig. 1) as to avoid the leaving of any suchresiduum. For this purpose the'lower longitudinal corners of the muflie are rounded as shown, so that any ore accumulating at these parts will fall back toward the working space of the muflie and come under the'operation of the scraper blades.

What we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a rabble the combination of a longitudinally extending rabble bar adapted to be reciprocated transversely but not longitudinally in relation to the furnace, scraper blades secured to said bar at an angle to the longitudinal axis thereof and all inclined toward the intended direction of movement of the material which is to be treated thereby, rods secured to said rabble approximately at right angles thereto, and means for reciprocating said rods in the direction of but not parallel with their own axes.

2. The combination of a furnace having openings in a side and discharge means at one end thereof, rods extending transversely of the furnace and through the aforesaid side openings, a rabble bar carried by said rods, extending longitudinally of the furnace and adapted to be reciprocated transversely but not longitudinally in relation to the furnace, and scrapers carried by said rabble bar and all inclined at an angle to said bar and toward the aforesaid discharge means.

3. The combination of a furnace provided with charging means and discharging means and with lateral openings extending in a direction transversely of the line of direction between said charging and discharging means, rods also extending transversely of said line of direction and through said lateral openings, a rabble bar carried by said rods and extending approximately parallel with said line of direction, said rabble bar being adapted to be reciprocated transversely but not longitudinally in relation to the furnace, and scrapers carried by said bar and all pitched at an angle to said bar and toward the aforesaid discharging means.

l. In a rabble the combination of a number of tubular rods, a plurality of tubular rabble bars connected to said rods approximately at right angles thereto and adapted to be reciprocated transversely but not longitudinally in relation to the furnace, and scrapers mounted on said rabble bars and having their faces pitched obliquely and toward the intended direction of movement which is approximately parallel with said rabble bar.

5. In a rabble the combination of hollow rods, a hollow bar carried by said rods approximately at right angles thereto and adapted to be reciprocated transversely but not longitudinally in relation to the furnace, said hollow bar being connected to said 1101- low rods so as to permit of the flow of a fluid through said bar and rods, and scrapers secured to said rabble bar at an angle to the intended lines of movement of the material to be rabbled, said lines of movement being approximately parallel to said rabble 6. In a rabble the combination of hollow rods, a plurality of removable hollow rabble bars arranged end to end and adapted to be reciprocated transversely but not longi tudinally in relation to the furnace, said hollow rabble bars being secured to said rods in such a manner as to permit of the circulation of a fluid through said bars and rods, and scrapers secured to said rabble bars at an angle to the intended lines of movement of the material to be rabbled, said lines of movement being approximately parallel to said rabble bars.

7. The combination of a furnace, lateral openings therein, rods extending loosely through said lateral openings transversely of the furnace, rabble bars within said furnace connected to said rods and extending longitudinally of the furnace, scrapers secured to said rabble bar at an angle to the intended lines of movement of the rabbled material, said intended lines of movement being approximately parallel With the rabble bar, means for reciprocating said bars, and means for closing said lateral openings gastight without interfering with the reciprocating movement of the rods therein.

In testimony whereof we have affixed our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

OTTO SPINZIG. lVOLDEMAR I-IOMMEL. itnesses HELENE Born, ANNA WIMER.

flopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner at Patentt, Waahinaton, 1!). G. 

